


spilled intentions

by ordanary



Series: PFF Bingo [3]
Category: Phandom/The Fantastic Foursome (YouTube RPF)
Genre: Flirting, Getting Together (sorta), M/M, Roommates, University
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-02
Updated: 2018-10-02
Packaged: 2019-07-23 16:06:36
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,620
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16162274
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ordanary/pseuds/ordanary
Summary: It’s Dans first day of uni and everything is going decently until a black haired boy in his year spills coffee all over his jumper– and then it’s suddenly going wonderfully.





	spilled intentions

**Author's Note:**

> Sup this isn’t my best work but I’m still proud of myself for producing content, so at least there’s that.
> 
> This was written both for the ‘university’ square of my phandom fic fests bingo card as well as the first day of @phillibf’s (@spookyweekbfs on tumblr) fictober day one prompt, ‘first day of college’. 
> 
> Multitasking :)

Upon entering year ten, Dan had been told by his aunt that high school would either be the best or worst years of his life. At the possibility that they could be his best, he’d been more than excited to enter this new chapter of schooling with a fifty percent chance that he’d have an actually enjoyable social life, maybe even a best friend– something he’d never had before. 

For the first week and half, he tried his best to fit in, to be kind and likeable. He smiled at teachers, laughed at his classmates’ not-so-funny jokes, and bounced from table to table at lunch in hopes of maybe finding somewhere he’d fit in. But as it turned out, nobody liked nice. Nobody cared if Dan was polite and friendly. Everyone seemed to want outgoing and entertaining, and nobody was worse for the wear then Daniel Howell, at least at the time. 

So he gave up on trying to be kind and likeable, and within the very first month of his high school career he knew those four years would be his worst. 

The only upside of this, however, was that if high school was already his worst, then university would have to be much better by default, right? He hoped so. 

It was currently his first day at uni, and Dan felt something akin to that same bubbly excitement he’d felt at the promise of a clean slate back in high school, only this time he knew well enough not to get his hopes up too high. 

Even with that knowledge, Dan still couldn’t quite manage to contain the smile gracing his chapped lips as he stood in the elevator on his way to his dorm, having come straight from registration at the front desk. He knew that things could go badly, but he also knew this was a fresh start, a place where he might fit in and be liked, a place that sure as fuck wasn’t high school. So with that in mind, he pulled his two heavy suitcases quickly down the halls of the third floor, scanning the doors for his dorm number and cringing as he heard what sounded awfully close to a moan originating from one of the rooms in passing. 

He continued down the painfully long corridor until he finally reached dorm three sixty four, pausing outside the door with his arm extended and only half ready to turn the key. 

He was maybe about to meet his roommate, the person he’d be sharing a living space with for the next school year. What if he messed it up? What if he said something weird that completely skewed any chances of them actually being friends? 

Taking a deep breath and doing his very best to push his anxieties aside, Dan turned the key before pushing the door open, sighing in relief as he quickly took note that the room was indeed empty. 

Okay, so he at least had a little more time to prepare himself before his roommate showed up. 

Pulling his luggage into the dorm and shutting the door behind him, Dan lifted his jacket from his shoulders, dropping it, along with his backpack onto the twin bed to the right of where he was standing. That would be his side of the room, he decided. 

The room was small, as he’d expected. There was barely enough room to comfortably fit the two beds, dressers, and small work desks into the space without it looking cluttered, but that was nothing Dan wasn’t used to. He’d lived in a series of fairly small homes his entire life, so he really hadn’t been expecting luxury or anything of the like. This was fine– comfortable, even. 

It didn’t take long at all for him to have unpacked his clothes into the small wooden dresser, afterwards focusing on making his bed and setting out a few of his personal things. Most of said personal items included band posters he’d had since year nine and photographs of people who hadn’t bothered to accompany him today, but he didn’t really mind. They had better things to do, he understood that. 

He sat on the newly made bed for a while after that, really letting it sink in that this would be his home from now on. This would be where he’d collapse after a long day, where he’d call his family from and bring his new friends on Friday nights. Well, if he managed to get any, that is. 

The flooring felt cold against his socked feet, the window facing the green courtyard outside a great contrast to most of the concrete views he’d had since childhood. It was different, but not particularly bad. The only part he was still anxious about, was the boy who’d be occupying the space across from his bed. Would he be kind, or funny, or likeable, or any of the few things that would make Dan want to be his friend? He hoped he would, but until he showed up it was really only up to fate. 

Deciding that he couldn’t let himself worry over the subject of his new roommate for too long, Dan picked himself up off his twin mattress and grabbed his keys and wallet before slipping his shoes back on, heading out of the dorm. He didn’t know where he was going, or what he was planning on doing, but he supposed he’d find out soon enough. 

His eyes glued to his converse as he walked, Dan barely managed to make it five minutes before he felt something hard and forceful hit his chest, a warm and very wet substance spilling all over his black and grey jumper. 

Dan gasped at the sudden impact as well as the wet feeling of what he was sure was coffee running down his chest. Looking up, he saw what appeared to be a very apologetic and almost scared looking boy about the same age as him, arms full with a large cardboard box while he dragged an even bigger suitcase behind him, a backpack handing over his shoulders. 

The boy’s ice blue eyes were wide, his feet frozen in place as Dan stood before him in startled shock, taking in the mess of coffee and its previous cup on the carpet below them. 

“Oh my god, I am so, so sorry,” the boy rushed, hurriedly abandoning his suitcase and box onto the hallway floor before crouching to pick up the coffee cup. “I was looking at my phone, and I swear I didn’t even see you. God, I’m so sorry.”

Dan shook his head, forcing a smile for the stranger’s sake as he rung out the warm wetness of his jumper. “It’s okay,” he assured. “I wasn’t looking either, so it’s really not your fault.”

The boy frowned. “Yeah, but it’s my coffee that’s all over your shirt.”

Dan shrugged, releasing the damp fabric from his fingers. “Oh well, my dorm is just back there, so I can change,” he promised with a kind smile. 

Still frowning, the boy shook his head. “I still feel bad,” he said. “My dorm is up there too, though, so let me walk you back?” 

“Yeah, okay,” Dan smiled wider, laughing a bit at the whole situation. “Let me help you with your things, though. I don’t want you crashing into anyone else on our way there.”

The boy nodded. “Thank you. I’m Phil, by the way.”

“I’m Dan,” he contributed before picking up the surprisingly heavy box and turning on his heel to lead Phil to his dorm. “Is this your first year here?”

“Yeah, I’m an English Language major.”

“Oh, that sounds fun,” Dan laughed. He’d never been much good with written words, so he applauded Phil’s ability to go to school for it. “I’m hoping to get a law degree.”

Phil chuckled, walking in perfect step with Dan. “You're one of the super smart ones, then?”

“God, no. Being a lawyer just sounds cool,” Dan admitted. That, and when everyone had been pressuring him to pick a career field, he’d been binge watching some law show, and it seemed interesting enough back then.

“Well, I hope your year goes well.”

“Me, too.” Dan finally stopped when they were in front of his door, blushing as he realized his keys were still in his back pocket and his hands were full. “Um, this is gonna sound really weird, but could you grab my keys from my back pocket and unlock the door?” He asked, feeling his face heat up as he spoke. 

Phil was preoccupied looking at the number above his door, though, eyebrows furrowed as he stared it down with a confusing intensity. 

“Phil?”

“You’re in room three sixty four?” He asked, blue eyes still fixed on the shiny brass number. 

Dan raised an eyebrow, wondering if maybe there was some weird ghost story tied to his room or something equally ridiculous. “Uh, yes?”

Phil turned to him, the corners of his lips lifting into an excited grin. “I think we’re roommates,” he spoke. 

It took him a moment to process the information presented, but Dan was soon matching Phil’s grin, truly allowing himself to take him in knowing that he’d be spending plenty of time looking at him from now on. He quite liked Phil’s icy blue eyes, his mop of black hair and nearly translucent skin. He liked his crooked smile and the way he was dressed. So far, he was definitely okay with them being roommates. 

“Well at least now I don’t have to stress over awkward introductions anymore as we’ve already gotten that out of the way,” Dan laughed, his embarrassingly prominent dimple most likely on display. 

The blue eyed boy chuckled before reaching his hand behind Dan in a way that confused him before he remembered he’d asked him to retrieve his keys. It didn’t even cross his mind that the action was completely unnecessary due to the fact that Phil had his own keys in his hand until much later. 

After entering the room with a huff, Dan placed the heavy box onto the carpeted floor, immediately cringing as he was now painfully aware of the dampness of his jumper and chest. “Ugh, I need a new shirt.”

“Sorry about that, again. I really didn’t mean to spill my coffee all over you, I promise.”

“Don’t sweat it, this isn’t even a very comfortable jumper, anyway,” Dan lied, mostly because he hoped it would maybe stop Phil’s insistent apologizing. Not that he didn’t think it was polite, he just didn’t want him to feel bad about it for the rest of the afternoon. 

He proceeded to shuffle through the already messy mass of shirts in his dresser drawer as Phil busied himself with unpacking his own things, pulling out a green and blue squared duvet much to the liking of his own monochrome one. 

After deciding on a deep grey hoodie from the back of his drawer, Dan then pulled the damp fabric of his shirt away from his slightly tanned skin, tossing the soiled jumper into his laundry bag and switching into the new, dry sweater. 

He didn’t even realize Phil was staring until he turned back around, catching the black haired boy off guard and making him stammer again for another unnecessary apology. 

“It’s okay,” Dan spoke shyly before Phil had the chance to say sorry for something he was far from offended by. Really, he felt quite lucky to have someone like Phil staring at his bare chest with a look that wasn’t resentment. Let’s just say that Phys Ed class had never been much fun for him in the past. 

He noticed the slight rosy tinge of Phil’s cheeks as he looked on at Dan with something else in his eyes, something that he’d never seen before aimed anywhere near him. 

And then within a split second Phil was composing himself, smirking at the now dry brunette. “I guess I really lucked out in getting a cute roommate,” he said as he turned back to his belongings. 

Dan turned back towards his bed as well, mostly because he feared that if he didn’t he’d be the one caught staring next time. Phil’s comment took him by surprise, his brain at a loss for a response. He’d never been called cute before by anyone other than his short lived girlfriend, Maggie Walsh, but she’d turned out to be a lesbian, so he didn’t think that counted. 

“You think I’m cute?” He asked timidly, unable to conceal the smile on his lips. 

Phil hummed, still not facing him as Dan gave him the same treatment, though for completely different reasons, he reckoned. Phil surely wasn’t after him like that, and he wondered if that detail alone would make this year one hundred percent more difficult. 

“Yeah, I mean, other than trying to be a genuinely good person, I mainly offered to walk you home so I could work up the courage to give you my number,” told Phil suddenly, the admission making Dan’s lungs momentarily starve for air. He turned around then, surprised to see Phil facing him as well with a look even more nervous than he’d been before, his previous cocky smirk completely wiped from his face. “I’m sorry,” he spoke rushedly, eyes widening in the slightest. “That was way too soon and unnecessary and . . . Wow, you seem to make me incredibly nervous, I’m sorry.”

Dan’s eyes softened at the sincerity of Phil's words, a giggle erupting from the back of his throat. Yeah, maybe he’d admitted that a little soon, especially considering they were now stuck with one another regardless of Dan’s reaction, but the latter couldn’t blame him, because yeah, Phil made him really nervous, too. Nervous in the sense that his stomach was full to the brim with butterflies, in a way that meant one look in those icy blue eyes and he could feel his heart doing somersaults. 

“No, Phil,” Dan assured. “That definitely wasn’t unnecessary.” He took a deep breath, maintaining his smile regardless of the rapid beating of his heart. “I think you’re cute, too.”

Phil’s eyes brightened, seeming almost hopeful. “Really?”

Dan couldn’t help but giggle again, the nature of their helpless flirting reminding him of the young crushes he’d witnessed during high school, the way everyone was so nervous to talk to one another because relationships were scary and new. And that still held truth for Dan, but he didn’t really know what to make out of what he and Phil were doing to each other just yet.

He nodded. “Yes, definitely.”

“Um, would you maybe wanna–“ Phil paused, rubbing the back of his neck nervously. “–go get coffee with me in a few minutes, or something? Y’know, to get to know each other better as roommates or whatever.”

Beaming, Dan stepped forward, pulling his phone from his back pocket and extending it towards Phil. “I’d love to, Phil. And you should put your number in my phone– wouldn’t want to forget about that.”

As Dan watched the aforementioned comply with rosy cheeks, adding a little lion emoji beside his contact name in a way that made Dan feel all bubbly again for this person he’d just met, he actually felt like this year perhaps wouldn’t be the worst. Maybe university would be his time, his good years, and after four years of hell, he was quite ready to accept that possibility. 

At the very least, Phil could be his friend, maybe even his person, someone he could actually rely on for the first time in years. And that gave Dan tremendous hope. 

He’d have to remind himself to thank Phil for that later.

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading :) Maybe leave a like and reblog on tumblr (@ordanary) ?? As always, kudos and comments are super appreciated and I hope you have a lovely day <3


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